HOME HEALTH GUIDE

Wairarapa Times-Age, 23 June 1943, Page 4

HOME HEALTH GUIDE

THOSE CHILBLAINS AGAIN.

KEEP THE FEET WARM AND DRY. (By the Department of Health). With the cold weather coming on. the usual epidemic of cold hands and feet can be expected. To people suffering from this complaint year after year the condition can become very distressing and sometimes painful. The best way to mitigate it is to wear fluffy socks or stockings, footwear which is ample in size and of thin flexible leather, and gloves which are soft and loose.

The essential thing to remember is that any constriction or tightness of socks, footwear and gloves must be avoided. Free movement of the toes and fingers help them from getting cold and stiff. House slippers, soft and woolly yet with thick soles, will keep ficcr draughts out in winter. Be careful to keep house slippers absolutely dry. and always put weather-proof footgear on when going outside. Keeping the feet warm and dry, never allowing them to be thoroughly chilled, is the secret of prevention. These measures will help to ward off chilblains, which are much easier to prevent than to cure. If you are subject to chilblains, however, and your hands and feet become thoroughly cold, try this: Gently massage the toes and fingers with a soft dry towel; then place the hands and feet in tepid water, and gradually add hot water until you feel the toes and fingers start to glow; reduce the temperature by adding cold water gradually; and afterwards massage the toes and fingers once more.